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A new book just released by President George W. Bush's former speechwriter claims that White House officials did not want to give the Presidential Medal of Freedom to author Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling because her writing "encouraged witchcraft.", Myfoxboston.com reported.
The Harry potter fansite The Leaky Cauldron posted the passage from the book "Speechless: Tales of a White House Survivor" that discuss J.K. Rowling snub from the White House.
[President Bush's chief speechwriter] Marc [Thiessen] liked to encourage a broad range of opinions from others, so long as theirs agreed with his. When Ted Kennedy was diagnosed with a brain tumor, I suggested that the president might at least consider awarding Kennedy the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Marc objected with the genteel diplomacy he was known for. 'That's crazy!' he thundered. ...This was the same sort of narrow thinking that led people in the White House to actually object to giving the author J.K. Rowling a presidential medal because the Harry Potter books encouraged witchcraft.
The fact that the White House did not award Rowling the the Presidential Medal of Freedom due to witchcraft is very odd. The First Lady Laura Bush was a self proclaimed Harry Potter fan. During a December 2003 interview with Good Morning America, Laura Bush explained that Harry Potter book were her newest favorite. She said she had read all of the books. You can read part of the transcript from that interview here on The Leaky Cauldron website.
In February J.K. Rowling was honored by French President Nicolas Sarkozy. She received the medal of Knight in the Legion of Honor order. The photo above was taken when she received the prestigious medal.
SOURCE: Examiner - Colleen Starr
